Taken Horizon Origin, volume 1, Duality

Episode 7 : blessing or curse to man?

The orange flames covered Mary's figure like protective armor.

"could have fooled me with how you acted earlier." I stated wryly, not making any expression on my face to match my amusement.

Angered by my joke the flaming girl lobbed a flame made hammer right at me, hiding behind the pillar again i escaped a cascade of explosions that followed the thrown hammer's scorching the stones at my feet.

"Honestly. This is the thanks i get for sparing you not once but twice, bloody princess?" Shooting out the charred crystals in [invective] i loaded six more rounds after hinging the barrel back into place and infusing ether.

"Don't call me that!" Mary screamed, brightening the fury of her flames light, burning me from their presence alone like a vampire under sunlight

[purgatorial flame, egg's on her apostle!]

A fusion beam of fire cut straight through the wall and pillar i was hiding next to leaving a molten trail of magma where it had struck, going just above my head as i ducked down.

"Fight me!" Mary screamed, pitching my heartened hearing.

"I'd rather not personally." Using [severance fist] i punched a hole in the wall creating a brief smoke screen of dust as i ran through the collapsed wall.

Marys angered screams echoed out in the complex corridors reflecting off the wall as the burning light of her flames grew brighter behind me through the dust.

[deserts golden hawk, questions why you wont fight?]

"Are you crazy? Thats what has been taking down the previous dragons! She doesn't need to kill me but deplete my health bar!" I pointed angrily at the floating red bar above my head now at 90% and quickly dropping.

[deserts golden hawk, reminds you of your immortality]

"...Does that affect the health bar?" I asked with genuine curiosity. No immediate reply came however so I asked again as I ran. "Go on. Answer."

[deserts golden hawk, emphasizes to run]

"You twisted your tune pretty quickly!" A beam of fusion fire came scorching into my shoulder cindering my flesh and bone to ash and reducing my health bar by a tenth as I whistled out the pain clenching my teeth tightly to stop myself from screaming i continued to run. Knowing stopping meant only failure.

As my clavicle regenerated the health bar didn't, "fucking!.." not wasting effort i prepped another [severance fist] while unloading three rounds from [invective] behind me.

Pring! Pring! Pring!

I didn't hear them make contact with anything but the sound of rushing footsteps and swaying light was evidence enough that my effort was fruitless.

Gritting my teeth i turned left at a crossroads and punched out a support pillar with an aether enhanced fist. The ceiling immediately cracked and collapsed behind me buying me at most a minute as the stone ceiling fell in on itself to barricade the corridor.

I don't know what happened but Mary is a lot stronger now than what Cayde remembered from the demon-human war! I need a way to catch her off guard! With no mana inside me it's unlikely she'll be able to sense my personal signature as I won't have one! Hiding my presence with aether should be simple so long as she does not land visual contact with me.

Finding a doorway leading outside i rushed out into the open air as the heat behind me grew more intense. Just as i escaped to the outside i swung around the exits corner escaping a wave of flash fire, melting the stone archway as it passed.